Highway Department

A resolution establishing the rules and regulation in respect to procedure before the Town Planning Board of the Town of Busti, County of Chautauqua, New York in respect to the approval or disapproval of plans submitted to the said Planning Board, pursuant to Section 276 and 277 of the Town Law and in respect to the dedication and acceptance of Town Highways.

Any individual, individuals or corporation desirous of conveying ownership of any road to the Town of Busti shall so signify their intent by filing with the Town Highway Superintendent and Town Board plans defining the location, grade and alignment of said road, and a map and description defining the boundaries of the property to be conveyed to the Town. Said plans shall show the proposed roadway alignment, grade, cross section and drainage facilities and shall be prepared by a licensed Professional Engineer or a licensed Land Surveyor where permitted by State law. Said map and description shall be prepared by a licensed Land Surveyor or an exempt Professional Engineer. The Town Board and the Town Highway Superintendent shall review said information to ascertain whether acceptance for maintenance and operation is in the best interest of the Town. Should the Town Board and Town Highway Superintendent agree to accept said roadway, said acceptance shall be conditional upon the roadway being constructed in accordance with the following specifications. Failure to construct the roadway and its related appurtenances in accordance with, or in excess of, these specifications shall cause the Town Board and Highway Superintendent to deny acceptance of the completed roadway.

HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION SPECIFICATIONS

Printable: PERMIT UNDER SECTION 149 OF THE HIGHWAY LAW


Highway Construction Specification chart in PDF Format

  1. The highway right-of-way shall be no less than fifty feet (50') wide. The highway shall be centered in the right-of-way.
  2. The roadway shall consist of 12 inch (compacted thickness) of gravel (approved by the Town Highway Superintendent), topped with an additional 4 inches of compacted screened No. 1 gravel. Basic dimensions and pertinent information are shown on the attached "Typical Roadway Section".
  3. Adequate roadside drainage, in the form of ditches where necessary, shall be constructed. Internal storm drainage systems with drop inlets, catch basins and manholes shall generally not be acceptable because the Town does not have the equipment to property maintain such facilities. The depth of ditches shall not be less than eighteen inches (18” below the shoulder of the road). Where driveway culverts larger than twelve inches (12”) diameter are required, the ditch depth shall be increased accordingly. The slope from the shoulder edge to the ditch (fore slope) shall be no steeper than 1 vertical to 4 horizontal. The slope from the ditch to existing ground beyond the ditch (back slope) shall be no steeper than 1 vertical to 2 horizontal. All components of ditches (fore slope and back slope) shall be within the dedicated right-of-way. Where this cannot be accomplished within the specified fifty foot (50’) right-of-way, the right-of-way shall be widened or a permanent drainage easement contiguous to the right-of-way shall be conveyed. All ditches shall be sloped longitudinally not less than 0.5% (0.5 feet in 100 feet) to provide drainage. All ditches shall drain to an adequate outlet (stream, roadside ditch or established water course). Where the drainage outlet is located outside the right-of-way, a permanent drainage easement not less than thirty feet (30’) in width shall be conveyed to the Town. Where drainage is carried across the roadway, culverts of adequate size and construction shall be installed. The sizes of all culverts shall be determined from engineering calculations. As a minimum, such culverts shall be eighteen inches (18”) in diameter and shall have at least twelve inches (12”) of cover at any point between shoulder breaks. Larger culverts shall be installed when drainage calculations indicate they are necessary.
  4. Prior to installation of roadway gravel, the entire right-of-way shall be cleared and grubbed. All topsoil, vegetation and unsuitable materials located in areas where gravel is to be installed shall be completely removed and replaced with granular material meeting the Highway Superintendent's approval. This material shall be graded and suitably compacted to provide a firm and solid subgrade for the placement of roadway gravel. Where excavations are necessary to install gravel, the native materials shall be compacted, to the Highway Superintendent's satisfaction, to provide a firm and solid subgrade for the placement of roadway gravel. The subgrade shall be sloped one-half inch (1/2”) per foot to each side of center line.
  5. After acceptable preparation of subgrade, highway gravel shall be installed in three lifts and suitably compacted. Each lift shall be not more than eight inches (8”) or less than four inches (4”) thick. The total thickness after compaction shall be not less than sixteen inches (16”). The gravel shall extend beyond the shoulder break and into the fore slope of the ditch to allow water within the gravel to drain. Highway gravel shall contain no stones larger than four inches (4”) in size, shall be uniformly graded and contain less than ten percent (10%) fines (passes a No. 200 sieve). The finish surface shall be not less than thirty feet (30’) wide and shall be sloped one-half inch (1/2”) per foot away from the centerline to insure positive drainage of the roadway surface.
  6. To the extent possible the roadway centerline shall be tangent. Where necessary, curves meeting AASHTO Standards, may be utilized. Except at intersecting roadways, no curve shall be less than twenty-one (21) degrees. The preferred minimum curvature shall be seven (7) degrees. Where deemed necessary for driver safety, the roadway surface shall be super elevated with the curve. Super elevation runoffs of adequate length, as defined by AASHTO, shall be provided at the beginning and end of each curve. At intersecting roadways, the corner radii shall be not less than twenty-five feet (25’). Dead end roads shall have a cul-de-sac with a minimum radius of fifty feet (50’) to the outside of the roadway.
  7. The roadway grades shall be not less than 0.5% (0.5 feet in 100 feet) and shall be no greater than 10%. All changes in grade shall be accomplished with vertical curves of sufficient length to provide eight distances (stopping and headlight) meeting AASHTO Standards. Under no circumstances shall such eight distances be less than 200 feet.
  8. All utilities (water, sewer, gas, electric, telephone, cable TV, etc.) shall be permitted longitudinal occupancy within the highway right-of-way or drainage easements. All such utilities shall be located outside of the rights-of-ways and easements conveyed to the Town, except where roadway crossing are necessary. Where utility services are anticipated, they shall be located in a separate easement at least fifteen (15’) in width adjacent to the public right-of-way. Public utilities (water and sanitary sewers) maybe located within the public right-of-way with the prior consent of the Town Highway superintendent and Town Board. Where said public utilities are intended to serve adjacent properties that are to be developed at some future date, the service laterals shall extend to the limits of the right-of-way.
  9. Intersections with existing or proposed roads shall be preferably ninety (90) degrees but shall not be less than seventy-five (75) degrees.